Why it works: Shallot and sauce are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and 1,303 recipes mention both. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Vermicelli Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the broth
Cut the lamb and veal into pieces.
Cover the pieces with 1 quart of water in a pot.
Heat gradually, covered, for 1 hour.
Add 4 quarts of boiling water.
Cook until the meat is in shreds.
Season and strain
Season with salt, sweet herbs, chopped shallot, and Worcestershire sauce, then boil for 10 minutes.
Strain the soup.
Return the strained soup to the pot.
Add vermicelli and serve
Boil the vermicelli in clear water until tender.
Add the vermicelli to the soup and bring to a boil once more.
Serve.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Shallot + saucetop 14% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together1,303 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Lamb + vealtop 14% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together568 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
-
Lamb + hamtop 15% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together160 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
-
Veal + hamtop 15% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together3,264 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Lamb + shallottop 16% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together147 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Lamb
- Gives the broth its rich meaty flavor and, as it cooks down into shreds, body.
- Veal
- Adds gelatin from its connective tissue, giving the broth a fuller, silkier mouthfeel.
- Vermicelli
- Provides the soft noodle texture that the broth is served with.
- Corned ham
- Contributes salty, savory cured-meat flavor to the broth.
The step that matters
Heat gradually, covered, for 1 hour. Starting the meat in cool water and heating slowly lets proteins and connective tissue release flavor and gelatin gradually, producing a clearer, more flavorful broth. Boiling hard early tends to make the broth cloudy and greasy.
Flavor stand-ins for the shallot
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lamb, veal, ham, sauce):
- Tomatoabout as good a flavor fit
- Asparagusabout as good a flavor fit
- Shallotthe original
- Mustardabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against lamb, veal, ham, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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